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Description
Catch-22 is like no other novel. It is one of the funniest books ever written, a keystone work in American literature, and even added a new term to the dictionary. At the heart of Catch-22 resides the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, a hero endlessly inventive in his... read more
Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis
Cast of Characters/Important People
- Yossarian: The protagonist of Catch-22, he is a pilot in the senseless war that provides the backdrop of the story.
- Nately: A good-natured nineteen-year-old boy in Yossarian’s squadron. Nately, who comes from a wealthy home, falls in love with a whore in Rome and generally tries to keep Yossarian from getting into trouble.
- Milo Minderbinder: A fantastically powerful mess officer, Milo controls an international black-market syndicate and is revered in obscure corners all over the world. He ruthlessly chases after profit and bombs his own men as part of a contract with Germany. Milo insists that everyone in the squadron will benefit from being part of the syndicate and that “everyone has a share.” He also takes his job as mess officer very, very seriously; as a result, the troops in Yossarian’s division eat better than any others.
- Doc Daneeka: The medical officer. Doc Daneeka feels very sorry for himself because the war has interrupted his lucrative private practice in the United States, and he refuses to listen to other people’s problems. Doc Daneeka is the first person to explain Catch-22 to Yossarian.
- Major Major Major Major: The supremely mediocre squadron commander. Born Major Major Major, he is promoted to major on his first day in the army by a mischievous computer. Major Major is painfully awkward and will see people in his office only when he is not there. His promotion to squadron commander distances him from the other soldiers, reducing him to loneliness.
Memorable Quotes
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“There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one's own safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; but as soon as he did, he would no longer be crazy and would have to fly more missions. Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn't, but if he was sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn't have to; but if he didn't want to he was sane and had to.”
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“What is a country? A country is a piece of land surrounded on all sides by boundaries, usually unnatural. Englishmen are dying for England, Americans are dying for America, Germans are dying for Germany, Russians are dying for Russia. There are now fifty or sixty countries fighting in this war. Surely so many countries can't all be worth dying for.”
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“But I’m afraid you have it backwards. It is better to live on one’s feet than die on one’s knees. That’s the way the saying goes.”
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“'CAtch-22 says you have always got to do what your commanding officer tells you to' 'But Twenty-seventh Air Force says I can go home with forty missions' 'But they dont say you have to go home. And regulations do say you have to obey every order. That's the catch. Even if the colonel was disobeying the Twenty-seventh Air Force order by making you fly more missions, you'd still have to fly them, or you'd be guilty of disobeying an order of his....'”
First Sentence
It was love at first sight.
Table of Contents
Authors & Contributors
- Joseph Heller (Author) - widely regarded as one of the best post-World War II satirists
Other Contributors:
- Robert Andrew Parker (Illustrator)
First Edition
Original Language: English
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Country: Add the country of publication.
Publication Date: 1999
ISBN: 0684865130
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Country: Add the country of publication.
Publication Date: 1999
ISBN: 0684865130
Page Count: 416
Classification
- Library of Congress: PS3558.E476 C3 2004
- Dewey: 813/.54 22
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